Problem with Bladder training for Radiotherapy

Hi KB.

I am currently doing radiotherapy. At first I had no problem with waiting 40 minutes before being called for treatment. However last week, my fifth, I started to have problems with holding my urge to go. The radiologist agreed to let me drink just 30 minutes before being called and this has worked so far

After being called it takes between 5 and ten minutes before the actual radio beam is applied, whilst they make sure you are positioned correctly, which puts me close to the 40 minute time.

I would speak to the radiologist about it, I'm sure they will accommodate your needs, good luck

           Bill

Hospitals vary hugely in how they manage the appointments but when John had his RT, he drank the water on the way to the hospital, had 3 more cups of water on arrival, waited about 10 minutes and then into the room. He had the 8.30am appointment every day and was usually back in the car & on his way to work before 9am.

KB

I used Tena pads and got them free as a result of the incontinence effect from surgery, the pad I used is equivalent to the new Tena 3 pads. If you have a reasonable control of your bladder they will hold around 170 ml of urine. They will struggle to hold a sudden gush of 170 ml.

A cliche I know but we are different, because of other issues I had a supra pubic catheter during SRT so I could drain a little out of the bladder. If I urinated normally, once the flow started I could not stop , my RT was a follow up to surgery so part of my plumbing system was missing.

I think you need a chat with the RT department, I was probably coming out of the RT department within 30 minutes of going in. I often see comments about how lovely the RT staff are.

Depending on the machine you are on you may get scanned every day, so they can see exactly what is happening to your bladder and bowel. 

My thought is that if you keep hydrated the water will pass through quicker. If you are dehydrated the water you drink at the hospital will take longer to get into the bladder.  I am sure you will soon get into a routine 

Thanks Chris

Good luck with your treatment.

In my conversation (titled Minor Q - Morning or Afternoon) -- still on page 1 as of now, there was some discussion about Bladder fullness and control.

The standard instructions at my center are to drink 500 ml one hour before the session. When I did that for my planning CT session, my bladder was near "maximum size", and they suggested I let out some urine, and redid the planning scans with bladder at a more comfortable size. They suggested I'm well hydrated (and said most men are not well hydrated), so they suggested that for me, I should drink 500 ml 30 minutes before the session, and that has worked well.

Some thoughts:

* their suggestion to drink 2 l per day is to ensure you are well hydrated, so that when you drink before your session, your bladder fills up quickly (rather than be absorbed by the body). Not feeling the initial urge for 50-60 minutes may be because you are not well hydrated. So try to be well hydrated first.

* the staff can advise you how to adjust the routine (like they did for me, suggesting I drink only 30 minutes before).

* the session themselves take no more than 15 minutes, so you won't need to hold for 40 minutes. If you are too full right before your session, you can let some out to be more comfortable.

* the centers using full bladder protocol will scan you before every radiation is applied, and can make minor adjustments to account for different degrees of bladder fullness.

It does indeed, I needed mine to persuade a Station master, to open a toilet for me at a "Covid" locked railway loo 😄